Finding the Real Thing
by Clara Barton
Summary: After a disastrous first date, Trowa runs into Duo Maxwell trying to buy a fake Christmas tree and decides to rescue him. A Christmas fic for Luvsanime02


Christmas fic for luvsanime02! Hope you enjoy!

Based on her prompt: Person A is at the store looking at fake trees to buy. Person B sees them and is horrified at the idea of a fake tree, so they kidnap Person A and take them to a tree lot and get them a real tree.

Warnings: Angst, language, fluff

Pairings: 2x3

_**Finding the Real Thing**_

"Tell me why again I'm friends with you?" Trowa asked with a sigh. He wedged the cell phone between his ear and shoulder and reached out to inspect the LED Christmas lights on the shelf in front of him.

He needed to match the color temperature and size to the strands he already had at home and he wasn't sure this box was the one he had purchased two years ago.

"Because no one else puts up with your moodiness?" Heero, on the phone, hypothesized.

Trowa rolled his eyes.

"Thanks, Heero."

"Of course. I'm here for you. Now, tell me how the date went."

Trowa sighed put back the box and reached for another. These looked better. Closer.

"It didn't."

"You mean he stood you up?"

"No. No, Duo showed up." Looking gorgeous as always, but with a slight, endearingly nervous tilt to his smile that made Trowa feel a weird fluttering sensation.

"Then what happened?"

Disaster. Tragedy.

They had sat down, had made small talk and joked and flirted and ordered an appetizer but then Duo had answered his phone, had apologized but said it was important. He had then spent the next five minutes telling "sweetheart" and "honey" and a few other endearments that everything was fine and of course he wasn't doing anything important and it wasn't your fault and no, it was nothing you did and Duo was so sorry and of course he would come over and no, no, he wasn't in the middle of anything.

"So you were dumped in the middle of your first date," Heero summarized after Trowa related the phone call and Duo's abrupt exit after the call.

"At least he paid for the food," Trowa groused. "It wasn't going to work out anyway. He's too…"

Too perfect. Too funny. Too smart. Too sexy. Too pensive when no one else was looking at him. Too sad sometimes when people talked about their families at work, when they showed pictures of their kids on their phones to each other.

"Too in love with his ex is what it sounds like," Heero practically growled.

Trowa shrugged. That too, clearly.

"He hasn't called you?"

"No. I'm sure he's still in bed with whoever." Trowa sighed and forced himself not to think about Duo naked in bed. "It doesn't matter. I'll see him on Monday at the meeting and… and I'll just ignore him."

Heero snorted.

"Yeah. Let me know how that works out for you."

Heero hung up after that less than helpful advice.

Trowa shoved his phone in his pocket and then glared at the selection of Christmas lights.

One of these was just going to have to work.

Or he could just buy three boxes of those golden-white lights and redecorate his tree…

Disgusted with himself for spending so much time worrying about the lights, Trowa gave in and just got three boxes of the golden-white lights and started to walk away.

As he walked down the aisle he glanced over at the fake trees, wondering what crazy colors they had on offer this year and he spotted a familiar figure.

Duo Maxwell.

Duo, cradling his jaw with his right hand and staring at the fake green Christmas trees with the kind of attention he usually gave architectural drawings.

"You are not going to get a fake tree."

Duo looked over at Trowa's voice, clearly startled. Trowa was a little startled himself, at his own vehemence. But still - a _fake_ tree?

"Ah… yes?" Duo offered him a self-deprecating smile. For a moment, their eyes met and held and Trowa knew he wasn't imagining the guilt and… longing? in Duo's eyes.

"You realize those things are petroleum and they are covered in chemicals and paints just waiting to off gas during any changes in temperature or humidity and - do you have any pets? These trees could kill them."

Duo's lips twitched.

"No. I don't have any pets. But the off-gassing thing could still be a problem." Duo sighed and looked at the trees again. "First time I've ever had to get a tree. I just… I don't know. Trees are important or whatever and I thought -" he gestured to a very tall, very full tree that was _almost_ lifelike -"I thought this looked nice."

"It's okay," Trowa said and walked over to inspect it. "But look how wide and flat the needles are - it won't catch the light right."

Duo's lips twitched.

"Is lighting all you ever think about?"

"It is what I'm paid to do," Trowa muttered, but he knew Duo had a fair point. Trowa had a hard time not looking at lighting installations critically, even when he wasn't working. He had had more than one boyfriend in the past call him obsessive over lighting arrangements.

Duo sighed.

"So… if not these then what?"

"A real tree."

"A real - aren't those things a fire hazard?"

"Not if you keep it watered and keep it away from open flames. Besides, they smell wonderful and they aren't doused in carcinogenic chemicals."

"I… what if I pick out a bad one?"

Trowa rolled his eyes.

"I'll help you."

Duo looked over at him.

"You don't mind?"

Trowa shrugged.

He should mind. He should ask Duo who he had talked to last night during their date and he should walk away and put the attractive architect at the back of his mind and never think about him again.

But Duo looked lost and overwhelmed and Trowa couldn't let him take home a fake tree.

Trowa turned and searched the shelves for a tree stand.

He picked it up.

"We're going to need this."

-o-

They left Trowa's car at the Target parking lot and took Duo's Jeep over to the tree lot where Trowa had purchased his own tree two days ago. It was a family run business, they grew the trees in the mountains just a few hours away from the city and really focused on sustainability and safe growing and harvesting.

Duo let him ramble on about the trees, smiling slightly, and Trowa recognized the expression from their meetings with clients, presentations when Trowa talked about lighting fixtures and where to place them for optimal effectiveness and aesthetic quality. Trowa had thought Duo was laughing at him, the first time he had seen that expression two years ago, but when he had eventually confronted Duo about it Duo had blushed and assured Trowa that he wasn't laughing at him, that he _loved_ when Trowa talked - when he went into detail and lost himself in his work.

By the time they pulled into the lot it was dark and it had started to snow again.

Duo smiled and wiped a snowflake from Trowa's nose when they stepped out of the car and then immediately stopped smiling.

"Sorry," he apologized and Trowa couldn't tell if it was just the cold or if Duo was blushing.

Either way, it wasn't fair for him to just do that to Trowa. To just - to be Duo.

Trowa shrugged and walked away, trusting Duo to follow him into the rows of trees.

"You want something tall and full?" He asked over his shoulder.

He could hear Duo jog, his feet crunching over the snow already on the ground.

"Yeah. I guess - yeah. Tall and full."

They spent nearly half an hour inspecting the trees, with either Trowa or Duo rejecting each one - pointing out gaps in the branches or discolorations - and then they spotted the perfect tree.

"That one," they said at the same time and Duo grinned at him.

"It's good, right?" Duo asked as he reached out to run his gloved hands over the branches.

"It's perfect," Trowa assured him.

Duo chuckled and Trowa found himself smiling at the sound. He loved Duo's laugh, always had.

Once they had the tree strapped to the hood of the Jeep and were sitting inside the car, warming up, Duo turned to Trowa.

"Thank you. I really appreciate you doing this. I… I guess I'll drop you back off at your car?"

Trowa arched an eyebrow.

"You really want to try to put this monster up by yourself?"

"Well, no, but - you don't mind?"

"No. I don't mind."

Probably because he was a masochist. But mostly because Duo smiled at him and Trowa really was powerless in the face of Duo's happiness.

The drive over to Duo's house was thankfully quiet, Duo turned on the radio and the car was filled with Christmas songs that Duo drummed his fingers in time to.

Trowa had wondered what kind of house Duo lived in, whether he had some upscale modern apartment or some rambling old house he was slowly restoring.

It turned out that Duo lived in an Arts and Crafts bungalow, probably build in the 1920s by the looks of it. The lawn looked well cared for, meticulously landscaped and Trowa couldn't help but think about the way Duo was always so picky when consulting with Heero, the firm's landscape architect, about what kinds of plants to put on the models. The house itself was in great shape, the cedar shake shingles stained a rich, warm brown and the trim around the house a bright creamy white that shone in the headlights of the Jeep.

"Home sweet home," Duo said as he parked.

"It's nice."

Duo grinned.

"Thanks. It was a dump when I bought her three years ago - but good bones, you know? I've had to work my ass off to get her back into good order."

"The yard looks nice."

Duo chuckled.

"Yeah, well, that is the product of a lot of begging and a lot of bribing. I had Heero help me out with it."

For some reason Trowa felt insanely jealous. Heero had never said anything about helping Duo out with his house.

"Alright… still up for helping me with this monster?" Duo asked and gestured to the roof of the Jeep.

"Of course."

They clamoured out of the Jeep and worked to cut loose the ties holding the tree and then pull it down.

"It's a heavy bastard," Duo grunted as they carried it towards the front porch.

"You wanted tall and full."

"Yeah, well, next time tell me I want short and scraggly."

They set the tree down on the porch while Duo searched for his house keys.

"Oh, shit, forgot the tree stand," Duo said as he opened the door. "Be right back."

He jumped down from the porch and ran across the snowy lawn back to the Jeep.

Trowa watched him, a little amazed that he didn't slip on the icy drive.

But then, as Duo ran back towards the porch, he did slip, falling hard, his skull cracking on the pavement.

Trowa swore and hurried over, careful to run through the yard and avoid any ice.

"Duo."

His eyes were closed, but he winced and slowly opened them.

Trowa pulled off his gloves and felt the back of Duo's head.

"Fuck this is embarrassing," Duo muttered and he tried to sit up.

Trowa's fingers were clean, so Duo wasn't bleeding, but still, he had taken quite the fall.

"How many fingers am I holding up?" Trowa asked, holding up three fingers.

Duo glared at him.

"Trowa, I'm fine. Just… really fucking embarrassed."

He got to his feet, slowly, and swayed a little.

"I should take you to the hospital."

"No. No. I just slipped. Jesus. I don't need to go to the hospital." Duo felt the back of his head and groaned. "Fuck I'm such a moron."

Trowa slowly followed him back up to the house, but when Duo tried to bend down to pick up the tree he stopped him.

"No. The tree can wait. Let's get you inside and get some ice on your head."

"My head was just _on_ ice," Duo grumbled, but he stepped past the tree and into the house.

Trowa dragged the tree to the left side of the porch and then followed Duo inside.

He wanted to look around, but he was more concerned about Duo's head than his interior decorating, and shelved his curiosity.

He found Duo in the kitchen, a bag of frozen peas on the back of his head and a scowl on his face.

"The hospital is just down the road," Trowa tried again.

Duo glared at him.

"I'm not going to the hospital. It's nothing."

"Do you want to sit down?"

Duo sighed and shrugged.

Trowa waited for Duo to walk into the living room and then followed him.

Duo sat down in the middle of what looked like an incredibly comfortable leather couch.

Trowa knelt down and started to pull off his shoes.

"What - no. You don't have to take off my shoes. I'm -"

"Just sit back," Trowa arched an eyebrow when Duo moved to stop him.

Duo huffed but he sat back and let Trowa take off his shoes and then tuck a blanket around him.

"I should get a towel to wrap around those peas - where do you keep your linens?"

"In the closet across from the bathroom," Duo murmured, sounding resigned but still irritated.

Trowa retrieved a towel and wrapped the bag of peas in it before having Duo lean forward so that he could prop it between the couch and the back of his head.

"How does that feel?"

"Like I'm an incompetent idiot." Duo sighed. "Better. Thank you."

"Let me get you something to drink," Trowa said and walked back into the kitchen. "What do you want?"

"I'm guessing you won't let me have any vodka."

"No," Trowa confirmed. He opened the cabinet above the coffee maker and had to smirk when he saw a box of instant hot chocolate mix. "Hot chocolate?" He called out.

"Yeah. That sounds good."

Trowa heated up some milk on the stove and looked back in on Duo. He had his eyes closed.

"Stay awake," Trowa said.

Duo opened his eyes and looked over at him.

"I'm really sorry about this, Trowa."

Trowa shrugged.

"Sorry about what? I always spend my Friday nights helping out those less fortunate than me."

Duo laughed and Trowa smiled at the sound.

He went back into the kitchen and finished preparing the hot chocolate. He noticed that Duo had whipped cream in his fridge and maybe it was going a bit far but Trowa added some to the top of each of their mugs and then sprinkled nutmeg over the whipped cream.

He brought the mugs out and handed one to Duo, who stared at it.

Trowa sat down on the couch beside him.

"What?"

"You had whipped cream and I added nutmeg."

"Oh." Duo took a sip. "It's really good." He sounded surprised, but Trowa was distracted by the fact that Duo had a dollop of whipped cream on his nose.

He smirked.

"What?" Duo asked suspiciously.

"Nothing. Just -" Trowa reached over and wiped off the whipped cream and then licked his finger clean. Duo watched him with narrowed eyes.

"What?" Trowa had to ask again when Duo kept looking at him.

"Nothing. Just waiting for my chance to return the favor."

Trowa snorted but he took a sip of his hot chocolate, making sure to get whipped cream on his nose.

Duo laughed and reached over, his index finger a caress as it trailed down Trowa's nose and swiped at the cream on the tip.

Trowa watched Duo suck on the finger and he felt his heart pound. There was no way that should be so sexy.

There was also no way that Trowa should be sitting here with Duo, thinking how sexy he looked, after what had happened last night.

"I, ah, I'm sorry about last night," Duo said, as if he could hear Trowa's thoughts.

Trowa frowned and he turned away from Duo and took another sip of the hot chocolate.

"It's fine."

"No. It's not fine. Trowa - Trowa you have to know I'm crazy about you. I've… hell, I've been half in love with you since that day you had food poisoning two years ago and showed up to work anyway and - and you were dating Quatre and you two seemed so perfect and that was fine but then you broke up and… and it took me months to finally ask you out and then everything went pear shaped and I'm sorry. Hell - even tonight got fucked up and I'm sorry. I just ruin everything I touch and…"

Duo sounded miserable and Trowa had to turn back to him, had to look at him.

"You've been half in love with me since the day I walked into your office, vomited in your trash can, and walked out without saying a word?"

"Well, you were also balancing a huge stack of paperwork while talking to a client and you did it with such style - and you came back to apologize later. And you bought me coffee for a month."

"It was the least I could do." Trowa had been humiliated. But the client had been important and sprinting to the bathroom had not been an option. He sighed.

"So last night. Your… ex called you and you decided to go back to him?" Trowa hazarded.

Duo stared at him.

"What?" He scowled. "No. Um, _no_. Hilde is definitely not my ex."

"Hilde?"

"Yeah. Hilde - my daughter."

It was Trowa's turn to stare.

"You have a daughter?"

"Yeah. She's -" Duo pulled out his cellphone and passed it over to Trowa. "She's going to be nine in March."

Trowa stared at the photograph of a dark haired smiling girl hugging Duo. They didn't look too alike - except for their smile.

"You've never mentioned her."

Duo sighed and took the phone back.

"Yeah, well… whenever Jim or Sarah start talking about their kids it would be awkward as hell for me to just jump in with stories about _my_ daughter, who I only get to see once a month because her mother has full-time custody and would really just prefer it if I keep sending over checks and never saw Hilde again."

"I'm sorry."

Duo shrugged.

"That's what happens when you marry your high school sweetheart and then go to college and realize you actually prefer men and your wife also realizes she actually prefers any other man than you."

"So last night…"

Duo sighed.

"Last night Hilde overheard her mother and her boyfriend fighting and she thought it was all her fault. And I went over and… hell, I don't know. I don't usually get involved, you know? But Hilde also doesn't usually call me and she just sounded so miserable. So I brought her back here and she spent the night while Rachel and _Carl_ talked about their problems and… and Hilde said she wished she could spend Christmas with me and Rachel said she could so…"

"So you needed to get the perfect tree."

"Yeah." Duo smirked. "And a concussion. Because those pair really well together."

"I'm glad you're able to spend Christmas with her," Trowa said, because he really had no idea what else to say. He had never pictured Duo as a father. Though, now that he knew Duo had a daughter, a lot of things made more sense.

"Me too. First time. Rachel usually takes her to visit her family but… but I think her and Carl are going to go to the Bahamas or something. I don't know. Whatever makes them happy and gets them back on track. Hilde needs that."

"You've never wanted to share custody?" Trowa asked and immediately realized how prying that question was.

"Of course I have," Duo sighed. "But Rachel is a good mother and… and Carl is a pretty good guy. Hilde's got a good life and… and I'd sure as hell like to see her more than one weekend a month but I want what's best for her."

"When you answered the phone - I thought you were talking to your ex. I thought you were getting back together with your ex. On the phone - while we were on a date."

Duo laughed.

"God. _No_. How awful. No, Trowa. My ex… I haven't talked to him in three years and I promise you, I'm never getting back together with him."

Duo looked sincere, was even biting his lower lip the way he sometimes did when waiting for a client to approve his designs.

Trowa leaned over and kissed him, just a light brush of his lips over Duo's.

"I can't believe seeing me vomit only made you _half_ in love with me," he grumbled as he pulled back. "Usually that makes guys fall head over heels."

Duo snorted.

"Okay, so maybe it was three-quarters, but it's going to take more than vomit in my trashcan to win my heart, Barton."

"How about nursing you through a concussion?"

"Only if your nursing includes another kiss."

"Just one?"

"Sorry. I meant to say another million or so."


End file.
